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Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Gov. Rick Scott of Florida thoughtlessly rejected $2.4 billion in federal aid for a high-speed rail line, he claimed last month that he was doing a huge favor for the national Treasury, which he expected would give away the money in tax cuts. That was nonsense, of course; Mr. Scott was really doing a favor for train passengers in the Northeast, Midwest and California, which were given $2 billion of his money on Monday for better service.

Republican governors so rigidly opposed to the Obama administration that they are willing to harm their states to score points. The result is a crazy quilt of state relationships with Washington, stitched more with ideology than reason.

Instead… a sliver of the Acela line and the Empire line through upstate New York. The Chicago-St. Louis corridor will be improved, and $300 million will be invested in the high-speed project between Los Angeles and San Francisco. Texas is accepting $15 million to start work on a fast line between Dallas and Houston.

Boone County taxpayers be ready—the tax bills are in the mail--lower assessments do not mean lower rates or lower taxes for many of us.

Kane County residents, many of whom saw big increases in the tax bills they just received. They may get more when McHenry County taxpayers get their bills due to hit the mail Thursday. "It's just a massive tax burden shift,"

the tax bill crunch comes is in taxing district levies, how much money the districts asked to receive. Mostly that went up 2.7 the officially certified measure of inflation.